From WO2008/041172 an apparatus is known for orienting objects provided with an open cavity, in particular caps for bottles that comprises a band conveyor by means of which the objects are conveyed as far as a series of brushes that rotate in the same direction, having a rotation axis aligned on the advancing direction of the band conveyor. Between each pair of adjacent brushes there exists a gap, the width of which is selected in such a manner that it is less than the height of the caps. The caps coming from the band conveyor with random orienting fall on the rotating brushes and, if the cavity thereof is oriented towards the surface of the brushes, the bristles of the latter penetrate said cavity and drag the cap, making it pass, also owing to the flexibility thereof, into the gap between two adjacent brushes and sending the cap to an unloading zone underneath. If the cavity of the caps is not oriented towards the surface of the brushes, the bristles of the latter slide on the surface of the caps that thus remain “floating” on the surface of the bristles, not being able to pass into the gap, which has a width that is less than the height thereof, until the motion of the brushes or a collision with other caps orients the caps with the cavity facing the surface of the brushes.
In this apparatus adjusting the width of the gap between pairs of adjacent brushes is critical. In fact, this width, as said, must be chosen so as to prevent incorrectly oriented caps being able to pass into the gap, whilst correctly oriented caps that are caught by the brushes have to be able to pass owing to the flexibility of the bristles. Incorrect adjustment of the width of the gaps between adjacent brushes may compromise correct operation of the apparatus, making the passage into the gaps between the rollers of the correctly oriented caps difficult or making also the passage of non-correctly oriented caps possible.
Further, the productivity of the apparatus is not particularly high, because non correctly oriented caps may remain “floating” on the brushes for a relatively long time, before assuming a correct orientation that enables the passage into the gaps between the brushes and the dispatch to the unloading zone of the apparatus.
The object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for orienting objects that has an open cavity at one of the ends thereof, that does not require critical adjustments and permits high productivity.
According to a first aspect of the invention an apparatus and method are provided for orienting objects.
The apparatus and the method according to the invention enable objects to be oriented reliably and with great productivity that have an open cavity at an end thereof, for example caps for closing bottles or containers.